Finger marks on shiny new iPhones: black or white best?

Question

Level 1

7 points

Finger marks on shiny new iPhones: black or white best?

So far I have been unable to compare like for like a white v black iPhone 3G and am worried about the shiny surface on the back picking up greasy finger marks.

In all the shops I have seen, the black iPhone has been touched by countless sweaty fingers, and has too many sweaty, greasy finger marks all over the back as a result. It looks like a toy out of the kindergarten toybox, all sticky and not something wholesome at all.

So I thought I'd have a look at the white one, except nobody has one in stock. I suspect it would show greasy finger marks far less than the black model, but does it look grubby more quickly? Has anyone any experience they could share? Are there any white demo models out there at all and if so, how much do greasy finger marks show up on them?

If I'm honest, I am not too much in love with anything glossy (I even bought a refurb white iMac instead of a new iMac because of the glossy screen) but there is no alternative to the iPhone and so I thought I'd have to put up with one of them.

I'd appreciate your feedback. Black or White, and why?

C2D iMac 24", PowerBook G4, PowerMac G5 DC, iMac CD, Mac OS X (10.4.11), PowerMac Server runs OS X Tiger 10.4.11

Posted on Jul 15, 2008 1:54 PM

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Answer 1

Zipidy

Level 1

32 points

Jul 15, 2008 2:09 PM in response to Basilisk

I have the black and yes fingerprint smudges are very visible making the phone look oily. That's why i had to buy a case for it.
I saw the white on displan in an Apple store and it looked very "clean".
Knowing a lot of people touched it already, I couldnt see any dirt, scratches, or even fingerprint smudges.
Hope this helps

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Answer 2

Jul 15, 2008 2:14 PM in response to Basilisk

I was in line last Friday for a black 16GB. At the very last minute, I switched to a white one. Yes, you cannot see fingerprints. But keep in mind that in the long run, a white back could be more likely to become discolored.

For now, White will stay cleaner. I've been to an Apple Store with plenty of both colors as demo models on the floor. The blacks were filthy on the back. The Whites were pristine.

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Answer 3

Jul 15, 2008 6:41 PM in response to AppleZilla

I saw fingerprints on the black model in the unboxing video posted online, so I had pretty much decided on white before I got to the store. As of 9AM on Friday, the black model on display looked filthy, and the white looked clean. I'm a bit concerned by staining and scuffing, but the black is certainly going to have problems with the latter, since it's very glossy when new.

I wish the black front had also been white. This might be a display contrast issue, but for the msot part, my iPhone looks black to me.

~ Kiran <entropy@io.com>

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Answer 4

Jul 15, 2008 6:45 PM in response to Basilisk

I have a black model and my girlfriend got a white model. Both colors are sexy as ****.

Black tends to show finger prints much easier. It shouldn't matter soon as I'll be wrapping it in a full body zagg skin but right now it does show fingerprints rather easily.

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Answer 5

Jul 15, 2008 6:57 PM in response to Basilisk

Look at a dirty shiny black car next to a dirty shiny white car. Guarantee you can see the dirty on the black car much better.

Get the white one.

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Answer 6

Jul 15, 2008 7:10 PM in response to Basilisk

I have black. The finger prints show. But really when it comes down to it, we are looking at the front, which is the same on both and no matter how you cut it, the glass gets tons of smudges, whether you have black or white.

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Answer 7

dj6961

Level 1

45 points

Jul 15, 2008 7:29 PM in response to Basilisk

I was convinced I wanted a black one until I saw how much it shows scratches & fingerprints..

I'm very happy with my white 3G 🙂

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